Freedom for 30,000+ chum fry! Well, almost. They are intrepid travellers whose journey began at the Tla’amin hatchery in Powell River with arrival to Cortes in December via the Klahoose Fisheries boat and on to the Whaletown Creek via DFO truck. The chum eggs were nestled in two incubation boxes while developing from egg to alevin to fry. They have now used up the natal goodies stored in their egg sacs and are ready to begin foraging in the creek and beyond.

Survival instinct was strong as the fry quickly schooled together in pools and good hiding places in the creek, and popping noises could be heard as they surfaced to take in a tiny bit of air to inflate their swim bladders. These chum fry will hone their hunting and survival skills in Whaletown Creek for 1-2 weeks as they move down the creek to Whaletown Lagoon, and then out for their great adventures in the ocean.

A parallel adventure is unfolding at the Klahoose Hatchery where another 30,000 chum cousins are being cared for by Klahoose fisheries. These chum fry will transition to rearing troughs at the hatchery for a couple of weeks before release into Basil Creek for a similar trip to unfold.

One of nature’s great migrations!

FOCI Streamkeepers are grateful to the Tla’amin and Klahoose Nations for their support and collaboration on this salmon enhancement project.
We look forward to further community efforts together as we collectively rebuild chum numbers in Cortes creeks .